Rocky Mount: When the Spotlight Finds No One Ready – 7-29-25

Mainstreetrockymount.com is where I write about preservation, community, and the stories that hold our past and future together. I write about values, vision, character, and courage, that revitalization always needs. As I write about saving the past to build a better future for Rocky Mount, the National Democratic spokesmen cheer for everyone but America. 

As we head toward our own City Council elections this October, and as national approval ratings make headlines, I can’t help but ask, Where are the leaders who are ready to step into the light?

According to the latest poll, only 33 percent of voters hold a favorable view of Democrats, just 8 percent “very favorable,” leaving the party with a net negative favorability of 30 points.

The latest approval numbers for the Democratic party reveal a leadership vacuum where strong, principled voices should be. Too much energy has gone into tearing down Trump rather than building a bench of new leaders with courage and vision. That is how we found ourselves with Biden and Harris, because there had been no serious effort to raise up better candidates.

Much of the Democratic brand now rests on the shoulders of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY).

Can these leaders, steeped in the strategies of yesterday, be the assets the party needs to rebuild its image and chart a compelling future? Or are they merely the caretakers of a narrative that no longer resonates with voters?

What is contributing to these poor ratings is that much of the party’s public posture is performance. It’s designed for headlines or social media clicks rather than real problem-solving. Based on the Biden performance in the latest interview, the party has become one of vulgarities.

I think of Hakeem Jeffries and his colleagues sitting on the Capitol steps, singing, a moment of theater that added nothing to the serious work of governing. Or the marathon filibuster that burned through hours without producing a single solution.

Our city will soon be voting for new council members, and the same questions apply. Who is ready to step forward with clarity, courage, and vision? Who will lead with integrity rather than politics? 

My heroes like Secretary of State, James Baker or General George Marshall didn’t simply react to their times, they shaped them. They were steady hands in storms far greater than today’s political battles, yet they never lost sight of the larger horizon.

Keeping company with these amazing Americans influenced this writing. Men of distinction are what Rocky Mount deserves come election time. Are you there?

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